Traditionally, many modern programmable infusion pumps include internal memory for generating and storing data representing actual pump operation over a period of time. The stored data may be reviewed on a periodic basis by medical personnel, so that the patient's condition and treatment regimen can be closely monitored, and the pump reprogrammed as needed. Unfortunately, data retrieval from the infusion pump and/or physician-dictated modification of the basic infusion pump program have required regular patient visits to a medical treatment facility.
To overcome this drawback, raw data has been transferred from an infusion pump to another data storage and/or processing device. An example of a data transfer system for an infusion pump is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,070 issued Dec. 27, 1994 to Purvis et al. and is entitled “Data Transfer System for an Infusion Pump,” which is herein incorporated by reference. This device relates to a relatively simple and effective data transfer system that is designed for retrieving data from, and sending program data to, a medication infusion pump. The data transfer system is particularly suited for remote data transfer and/or reprogramming of the infusion pump.
Over the years, bodily characteristics have been determined by obtaining a sample of bodily fluid. For example, diabetics often test for blood glucose levels. Traditional blood glucose determinations have utilized a painful finger prick using a lancet to withdraw a small blood sample. In addition, all of these systems are designed to provide data at discrete points and do not provide continuous data to show the variations in the characteristic between testing times. The data representing the results of the test are often stored in a memory of a glucose meter. The data is then downloaded into a computer for later review. However, none of these systems coordinate infusion pump data with the glucose meter data. Also, these systems generally only download raw data and do not provide for analysis and presentation of the data in a useful format.